Outdoors all day!

[Kay/NC]

Winn was finally back for a " normal" day with me, after my road trip Tuesday, his with his Mama on Wednesday, and the three of them all day yesterday, equipment shopping. We got going outdoors not long after he arrived at eight...short cartoon brak with breakfast, while I git supper into the crockpot, then the sandbox and garden called.

I would say that we were outside all but about thirty minutes, chopping garden weeds, mulching blackberries, and just knocking around. We dragged out a new tent, rolled out a quilt inside, and took a three-hour nap...at least he did!

It's been such a cool, wet spring, this was a great change of pace. Since supper was cooking on its own, I had no worries, just Piddling around and ckeaning up the yard. Looks lots better, and I feel pooped enough to really rest.

Hope you get to enjoy the great outdoors soon, too!

[turkey feather]

We set out some plants in the garden and sowed lettuce and radishes. It is very late for us here. It frosted the night before. I only got a fraction of the grass cut and now the rain has begun. The grass seems lush this spring maybe from the snows. I have my winter clothes clean and put away which is a job I dread. We keep needing the jackets so they are not washed yet. DH planted new asparagus last week and we still have lots of planting left to do.

There was corn planted in many fields several days ago but much of the land was too wet to work.

[Kay/NC]

Have been holding some tomato and pepper sets here in NC for a week.  The two rows Winn and I made ready with drip tapes and black fabric mulch a couple of weeks ago are ready and waiting for the masty spell to pass.  He was really excited to push the start button on teh new timer yesterday, adn hear the water squirting through the lines. 

Herbs for the new "herb spiral" bed are in the sunroom at Jenna's.  Fortunately the old floor drain by the garage walk-in door lets runoff from watering them drain away.  I have onion sets and sweet potato transplants picked up Thursday tucked in the truck for the ride north later today.  Was hoping to plant, but the rains are right on us in NC, and radar shows already raining up there. 

Oh, well!  I needed a day to drive up to Whole Foods in Richmond, and stock up at Sam's.  Don't know whether or not Mike will come along, or lag behind and work on equipment.  I am betting on the latter. 

He was happy to find our old hay tedder up there apparently in decent shape this week, and I think is ready to haul a rake that way today.  With the baler and cutter we bought in January, that's a full set.  This is really happening! 

We actually agreed the other day that my tiny "estate" Kubota is big enough to ted and rake.  Not the fastest, but it is very transportable, compared to a bigger farm tractor. 

Is is stupid to be looking forward to being out in the field again?  I can't tell you how much I have missed tractor time! 

[linda/IL]

Still so cold at night here that no plants are being put out.  We were in southern WI Sat. and the little greenhouse/gift store has lots of plants right next to the building & under some rafters and they covered all of them at night.  Furnace is still on here.  I know, many folks refuse to let it continue to run, but with even mild arthritis I need to be comfortable.  I find it no fun to be cold in my own home.

It seems strange to see the majority of greenhouses still keeping their plants inside, at least at night, instead of sitting outside at this calendar month/day.  Rained an inch here on Sat. so no planting going on but it did soak up quickly.  We have been very dry.

[turkey feather]

Cold wind stilll blowing here this morning again. I went out to check for wet grass and will have to let it dry more. Strawberries blooms look to have been damaged by the frost on Friday night. I hate to have the furnace running this late too but there is no choice.

[Ruby Lou]

Rained here on Friday afternoon and Saturday morning pretty hard.  By afternoon it has cleared up.  Sunday was spent outside for me.  Mowing, gardening, mowing, gardening until I could no longer deal with the pain in my joints and muscles.  My knee bones are very sore today.  Got two farms mowed and another hosta garden at my mom's cleaned up and one at my house.  Just keep tellng myself, little by little it will get done.  furnace still stays on at our house in the evenings.  Off during the warmer days.  Some corn has been planted around, but my DH didn't want to lose any if it froze.  He plans to start this week when it drys off.  Not sure my body can lift those corn bags for him this year if he needs extra in the fields.  Need to redo some flower beds at my house.  Would like to plant some tomato's and beans, but need to find room.  I have pretty much turned all my beds over to perennials.  Been wanted to start up a strawberry bed again too. 

[Kay/NC]

Monday is preschool day, but the remainder we spent outdoors for all but bits and scraps of time again. Hard to believe he onky has ywo more weeks of this " school" year.

Winn planted the tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, a couple of squash, and even Sugar Baby watermelons, here in NC. We stuck some old bamboo tree stakes in the soft garden ground, and Mike tied them together with a scrap of baling string. Tomorrow, we are going to the farm and garden center in Virginia, to get some " magic" beans for planting the bean teepee.

I have decided to do every fun kid's gardening thing we want here in Carolina, since the garden is inside Winn's playyard fence. He has his strawberry beds, and thornless blackberries. I think popcorn and pumpkins need planting here, for sure. Whatever strikes our fancy.

I am so in love with these drip susyems...they really make things grow! Winn loves rolling out the spool of tape for me for each row.

I

[dairy mom]

still haven't been out too much.  Very cool yet here.  The breeze just has no warmth to it at all.

None of the plant places in town have anything out yet.

Very little field work started here yet either.  The neighbors have been out doing oats this week and we've been hauling a little manure.

So far mostly it's the Amish out in the fields, they're always first.  And unfortunately there have been a couple of bad accidents.  Amish that has done a lot of building for us over the years had his team runaway on him and his legs got busted up pretty bad.  They put pins in but mostly the concern is infection from being dragged in the dirt.  Geez this guy had his jaw broken several years ago when a team got away from him.

Grass is beginning to green.  Hubby fired up the lawn tractor yesterday.  Trees are just beginning to come back to life.

But they say the month of May will be much warmer.  Hope so, am ready for the furnace to quit running.

Was about 34 this morning when I fed my babies.

[joepeters752]

I don't think I'm too far from you dairy mom.   Everyone is out planting corn this week.   Last week they did oats and Alfalfa.  We started hauling manure on Monday.   Last year at this time we had 17 inches of rain to deal with through the first week of June.  We hire the fieldwork done, so who knows when they will get here.  We need to empty our pit before we can plant all our corn. 

It was 34 here this morning too.  We've had the furnace on most every night.   There's a crappy NE wind every day off of Lake Michigan. 

[turkey feather]

That NE hard cold wind was crappy in S IN too. I sat facing it for a softball game. It was bothering the players too and the score was low 1-0 in the first and 16-4 in DGD's winning game. It was stopped after a few innings. Few parents and Grandparents out last night.

Much field work here too with tractors going late into the nights and many fields planted.